Only One Choice Was Different
by 13darkstar
Summary: What if Gale had been Reaped instead of Peeta? The whole story would be different. Same arena, same tributes, same tyrannical president. The only difference is that the Girl on Fire's partner isn't the Boy with the Bread.
1. The Reaping

"Primrose Everdeen," Effie Trinket called loudly into the microphone. It was stone silent, just like every other year. But this year I felt everyone's eyes dart to between me and my little sister, my precious, little duck.

She walked out of the crowed to go up to the stage.

My feet were moving before I knew it, and next thing I knew I was saying, "I volunteer! I volunteer as tribute!"

The crowd was even more silent than before, if possible. The only noise was Prim's screams, begging me to stop and her hands clinging to my arm, too strong for me to pull free. Her grip was suddenly released.

"Up you go, Catnip," Gale said, as he carried Prim off my arm to my mother.

Gale, my best friend, my hunting partner. I meet him a few years ago in the woods. I had found one of his snares and he thought I was stealing. When he asked me my name he thought I said Catnip. After a while we became friends and shared our secrets, and I got a nickname.

I was going to leave him all alone in this. We had promised each other that if the one was reaped to keep the other's family alive. And now Gale was going off to the mines in a few months, since this was his last reaping, with six people to take care of. I know I should, but I can't bring myself to ask him to abandon my family for his, and I know he never will.

"What is your name, dear?" Effie asked me.

"Katniss, Katniss Everdeen." I replied my voice quiet, but strong.

"Well I bet my buttons that was your sister!" Effie exclaimed, "It's lovely to have you dear."

"Now for the boys," Effie Trinket chirped, with her high pitch Capital accent that Gale and I had been mocking only hours earlier. She reached her long, pale fingers in and pulled out a scrap of paper.

"Peeta Mellark."

I breathed in relief, but froze when I remembered who this boy was. He took a beating to give me a loaf of bread, the same bread that inspired me to learn to hunt, and the same bread that took me to the woods where I meet Gale.

Peeta began to walk up to the stage and a figure caught my eye. Gale was walking forward in the crowd. I suddenly knew what he was thinking and cursed him under my breath. I tried to make eye contact but he wasn't looking at me on purpose, I knew it. We know everything about each other.

"I volunteer." Gale called, striding past Peeta, his gaze shifting to mine. He knows what he has done is unforgivable, but he knows that now I won't want to kill him for more than a few hours.

"And what is your name?" Effie inquired.

"Gale Hawthorne." Gale stated not looking at her but at me.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Effie called, "Katniss Everdeen and Gale Hawthorne, the tributes of District Twelve!"

The crowd stayed silent, and brought their three fingers to their lips and then in our direction, a gesture of respect in our District.

"Hey!" Our mentor, Haymitch, walks up on to the stage, clearly drunk out of his mind. "I like you two," he babbles. "You've both got a lot of… Spunk!" And with that he falls off the stage. Great, now District Twelve is the laughing stock of Panem.

Effie asks us to shake hands just as all the tributes do every year. Instead of shaking my hand, Gale reached forward and pulls me closer, holding me close in his strong arms. Then he breaks away and turned us both toward the audience, and holds our hands in the air. Then the peacekeepers swept us away to the Justice Building, breaking our hands apart.


	2. Goodbye

We were shoved into separate rooms in the Justice Building. I was given only a few moments to say goodbye to everyone I cared for. My sister cried in my arms and my mother was silent. My friend Madge gave me a pin with a mockingjay on it and wished me luck. Even Greasy Sae came in and told me that Prim would be fed.

After Greasy Sae left I thought I was through with visitors. I stared out the window in silence. My head snapped around when the door opened again and Peeta stepped into the room.

"What are you doing here?" I ask, my voice questioning but not harsh.

"I came to say goodbye," he stated quietly. "I just… I just needed you to know that Prim will be fed. And…"

I watched him try to gather himself so I say, "Just don't get caught this time, please."

His eyes flick to mine. "You remember."

I nod.

He sighs. "I'm botching this. I just wanted you to know that when these games are over that you'll have someone to come home to."

I stand and hold out my hand. "Thank you."

He grabs my hand but pulls me in to hug him. I don't pull away.

"See you later," he says as he leaves.

The peacekeepers come for me and lead me out of the building. Lights and cameras attack my vision as soon as I step out the door and I almost trip into Gale. He catches me and we both work our way through the reporters with peacekeepers ahead and behind us.

We're lead into a car where Effie waits for us. We get in on either side of her and sit quietly as she chatters. The district passes by us to quickly and we're at the train station where we're herded aboard.

As we're shoved into the train I twist my torso in a strained attempt to reach the window, so that I can have one more glance at home before it's gone forever.

Gale comes up beside me and lays his hand on my opposite shoulder. We stand in silence as we watch our home trail far behind us, and being forced to accept the knowledge that at least one of us would never return.

"Well," Effie squeaks in her ridicules accent, "why don't I show you to your rooms. Dinner is in two hours so you have to get settle." Gale chuckled humorlessly under his breath. I raise my eyebrow and look at him, but seeing my confused expression only makes him smile.

Effie drops Gale off at his room then takes me to mine. I close the door so that I can explore my room in peace.

The walls are a simple white and the carpet and curtains covering the window are a dark blood red. There is a dark oak dresser and a large bed colored with the same white and red as the rest of the room. There is a door leading to a sparkling clean, white bathroom. The sink is large with a faucet that looks like it is made of gold. The shower was big and had so many buttons I couldn't decide what all of them could possibly be used for.

Dinner wasn't for an hour anyway and I was hot and sweaty so I figured it was as good of a time as any to figure out how to use the shower. I stripped off my clothes and left them in my room, walked into the bathroom and closed the door behind me. I turned on the shower and the spray that hit me was so hot that I let out a short cry and cursed.

After I got the shower to a more tolerable temperature, I figured out how to have the machine wash my hair and blow dry it. At home our bath tub was small and we rarely got hot water. It disgust me how they spend so much on lavish things like this when all but one of us will be dead soon, and thousands of people are starving.

I walked out to discover my clothes were gone. I looked in the dresser and found a pair of dark pants and a form-fitting, simple, black, button-up shirt.

I walked back down the hall toward the window that Gale and I had looked through. I paused at the edge of the room and just stared. Gale's wearing black pants like mine and a white t-shirt that fit him perfectly. Every muscle on his torso is outlined perfectly, the years of hunting prominent on his body. He's leaning on the wall as he looks out the window, his left arm above his head to support him. His face looks troubled but is still incredibly gorgeous with the sun reflecting off his features in the perfect way. When I see him like this I understand why everyone calls Gale a stud. He really is very handsome. I just have never been attracted to him.

My next step alerts Gale to my presence and his head turns to meet me. He smiles and gives me a quick one-over and says, "You look good, Catnip."

I smile and reply, "You're not too bad yourself." He grins again.

We walk to the dining car and see that dinner is just being served. Effie is already sitting and we join her. Effie starts to say something when a still drunk Haymitch walks in the door. He sits and takes another long swig from the bottle. My temper gets the best of me. "Stop it," I snap.

He smiles a drunken smile. "Or what?" He says sarcastically and reaches for the bottle. Gale and I both react at the same time. Gale grabs the bottle and throws it so hard it goes straight through the window, while my knife stabs the table less than an inch from Haymitch's hand.

"That's enough." Gale said harshly.

"_You're_ going to be the one to kill us if you don't sober up," I retort in the same tone as Gale's voice.

Haymitch looked at us for a long moment. He smiled slightly. "Well," he said, "seems like I got a pair of fighters this year." He gestured to Gale. "I can tell already you're strong. That will be useful in hand to hand combat. But you," he pointed at me, "what can you do?"

I wrenched the knife from the table and threw it at the wall. It land right in between boards, making me look better than I really am.

Haymitch nodded his approval. "Good, good. What else?"

"Katniss is a great shot with a bow," Gale stated.

"So are you," I shot back.

"You're better than me."

"You set better snares than I do."

"You're better at climbing trees."

"You weigh more."

"It doesn't matter."

"You have fifty pounds on me and it's all muscle."

"Regardless," Gale grinned, "You swim faster."

"Yeah right," I laugh, "Two of my strokes match one of yours."

Gale and I both scowled at one another, clearly frustrated with our stalemate, but both of us are smiling. "Enough." Haymitch said. "Clearly both of you are skilled. And I'm going to guess you to want to be trained together, correct?"

Gale and I nod.

"Good. Tomorrow you will meet your stylists. _Don't_ object to anything they might do. They know what they're doing. And when you're waiting to board the chariots, don't agitate the other tributes. That fact that you two will be a team will already draw attention to you."

Dinner was served with lavish dishes. Lamb stew, creamy sauces, chocolate covered strawberries; the one good thing about the Capital is that the food is fantastic.

"At least you two know how to use utensils." Effie says. "Last year's tributes ate like animals."

My eyes dart to Gale, who looks like he's about punch Effie. I'm angry too but I have to figure out how to prevent Gale from knocking our escort out cold. So I drop my silverware and begin to eat the juicy steak in front of me with my hands. Gale joins me a moment later. We laugh at Effie's disgusted expression.

We leave dinner and go to the sitting area to watch the recap of the other Reapings. The tributes from one and two look intimidating as always, but the tall blonde boy from District 2 worries me the most. His confident stance and stocky build along with the dark look in his eye gives him an intimidating look, and already I know that he is going to be one of the main tributes to beat.

The rest weren't really noteworthy except the from District 11 there was a really tall boy who had as much muscle as the boy from District 2, and the little twelve year old girl that reminded me of Prim.

Then our Reaping was next. Already our District is something to remember with first me, then Gale volunteering. But what really made us stand out was when we held our hands in the air, presenting ourselves as a team.

"Alright," Haymitch said, "go to bed. "You have a long day tomorrow."

We walked down the hallway toward our rooms. My room is before Gale's. "Night, Gale."

"Good night, Katniss." Gale says, but as a close my door I swear he slows his stride and frowns at my door.


	3. The Train

I woke up just before dawn the next morning. I hadn't slept well, so I took a shower to wake myself up. I knew I didn't need to wake up for several more hours but I was anxious. I dressed in jeans and a red tank top with a light black jacket, and I braided my hair down my back.

I didn't know where I should be, so I walked to the back of the train. There was a huge window that covered three of the walls on the back of the train instead of door. I guess the train was moving too fast to stand on the small platform right outside. I stood looking out the window for around an hour, content with looking at the flat landscape in silence while I reveled in my thoughts.

_How can Prim survive? Peeta can't feed her forever and I know Greasy Sae made the same promise to Gale. _I hoped my mother would be able to make some money because if I don't come home my mother will be the only person Prim will have left.

My only comfort was that if Gale won instead of me they would never die. He would make sure of that.

"You couldn't sleep either, huh"

I about jump out of my skin, and I whipped around so fast my toe slammed into the side of the wall because I'm not wearing any shoes. "Damn it!"

I looked up and saw Gale chuckling. "It's not funny," I growled.

"Yes it is," Gale said.

"You're horrible, you know," I remark, but my voice is light and not harsh. I turn back toward the window and see the landscape start to get rocky.

After a moment I say, "Why would you do that Gale?"

"Hmm?"

I turn to look at him. "Why would you volunteer?"

He doesn't meet my eyes. Instead he turns his head to look out the window and whispers, "I don't know."

"What if we both die?"

"One of us will make it." Gale turned his face to me. "We have to."

We stand in silence and watch as the terrain begins to incline and become rockier as we enter the mountains. After a while I turn away and walk back down the hall, Gale right behind me.

"Well there you are!" Effie squeaks. "Early risers, good, good! We have a big, big, big day!"

Breakfast was grand, with hot chocolate, toast, syrup, and chocolate covered strawberries. I got my first real view of the capital while I was sipping my cocoa through the window. The buildings were tall and bright with lights and people crowding up against the railing to try to get a glimpse of us.

I take my cocoa and lean my shoulder up against the wall near the window. I watch the mass of bodies wave and cry out to me, trying to get me to respond. But I don't, I hold to much hatred in my heart to open up to these people till it's absolutely necessary. And based on Gale's expression he feels the same way.

"You're not helping yourselves," Haymitch said without looking at either of us. "All you're doing is making my task a lot harder."

"Any what would that be?" I say, even though I already know the answer.

"To keep you two alive."

The moment I step out of the train, I'm swept away into one of the largest buildings I can see. There three people with colorful hair and skin rush me into a grand bathroom. Then they wash my hair with some special products, and they wax all the hair off my body and shape my eyebrows into perfect arches.

They escort me into a simple room and tell me to have a seat and that my stylist would be there shortly.

I take a moment and inspect my body. My skin is soft and smooth, my hair shiny, and my nails are perfectly shaped into soft ovals. I feel almost naked, setting aside the fact that I'm only wearing a robe. It feels like the Capital has peeled layers of skin off my body and has left me unnaturally bare.

"Hello Katniss," my stylist says as he walks in. "I'm Cinna." He has me stand as he inspects me but lets me keep the robe. "Perfect," he says. "You have just the right form for your costume. District Twelve will be the star in the Parade this year."

The Parade is when all the tributes are dressed in elaborate outfits and carried through the streets on chariots. The parade is the first chance we get to attract sponsors. I can't help but wonder what costume District Twelve will be sporting this year. The costumes are based off every Districts industry. Since our industry is coal, I would guess we would be dressed as coal miners once again.

"What's the theme?" I ask.

"Fire," Cinna says, and he flashes me a smile.


	4. The Parade

_Katniss Pov._

I stared at myself in the mirror. I was in a skin tight black leotard, sexy black boots, and a thin black cape. My hair was curled into voluminous waves, and with the smoky eye shadow, bold eyeliner, and blood red lipstick, I had an extremely seductive and furious demeanor.

"So," I ask Cinna nervously. "You're actually planning to set me on fire?"

"That's the plan," Cinna said confidently. "It will capture the attention of the audience and everyone will forget who came before you."

Cinna took me down the elevator to the pavilion where all the tributes were gathering near there chariots. The roar of the crowd was deafening even with the giant steel gates that counseled our presents.

I looked around for Gale, confused with what to with myself without him. I finally gave up and settled myself next to one of our coal black stallions.

_Gale's Pov._

I walked out of the elevator with confidence radiating from every pore of my body. I was happy with how our costumes were turning out. My stylist hadn't messed with my appearance to much except for when the waxed all the hair off my body. My hair was shiny, I was clean shaven, and my outfit fit me in a way that really showed all of my muscles. I don't usually think myself to be cocky but since I'm gonna die soon anyway, why not?

I started toward our chariot in search for Katniss. And what I found was a real shocker.

Katniss stood in a black leotard similar to mine but hers was much more form-fitting, highlighting every curve she had. She was wearing boots that highlighted her legs in the perfect way, and her hair was gently curled behind her. Her already beautiful eyes were outlined in bold black eyeliner and smoky eye shadow, and her gorgeous lips were blood red. She was simply the sexiest women I had ever seen.

I sucked in my breath and tried to control myself. _Don't do anything stupid like trip over your own feet, _I thought. _Or kiss her._

It killed me to think what that might cause if something like that happened. I am so in love with her and I'm too scared to make the first move. She's only sixteen and I know she has never even kissed a guy. She detests the thought of marriage and kids and that's everything I want with her. The only thing that truly matters to her is Prim.

For almost a year I've restricted myself from making and kind of move because the thought of losing her was worse than never having her. _God damn it! Why did you have to be so impulsive and volunteer! She could have won and some day she would have been yours you god damn idiot! _All I ever wanted to do was tell her I loved her, but now I don't think I will ever get the chance.

_Katniss Pov._

"Well," I heard a familiar drawl, "look what we have here."

I whipped around to face Gale. His hair was combed back, and he was wearing a similar outfit to mine. I had one look at him and I already knew that every woman in the Capital would want him. He was simply gorgeous.

"Wow," I said. "You look good Gale."

He chuckled. "I'm nothing next to you Katniss. You're stunning."

"Yes yes you're both gorgeous. Now!" Haymitch said, placing his hands on our shoulders. "Be friendly and be bold. You have a lot of competition."

"Don't worry," Cinna chuckled as he came up behind us. "Nobody will forget you."

He was carrying his torch of synthetic fire. As he reached over to light my cape I cringed. But instead of the sharp bite of flames I was expecting I just felt I light prickling sensation as the fire consumed me. "Perfect," Cinna whispered.

He lit Gale and we were told to climb into our carriage. The gates opened and the roar of the crowd hit us full force. "Remember, be friendly." I whispered to Gale.

As we started out on to the streets he whispered back, "I'll try."

The lights were stunning. In the moment it took for my eyes to adjust to the bright light the roar of the crowd rose to a fever pitch. It took me a moment to realize that the crowd was roaring for us. I look up to the huge screen and almost gasped. We were deadly looking, fierce, and beautiful.

I began to wave to the crowd and blow kisses. Gale was almost flirting with them, picking one woman every hundred feet to give charming looks and a beckoning gesture. We had the screen's attention ninety percent of the time.

Gale reached over and grabbed my hand. "Come on," he whispered. "They'll love it."

We lifted our hands in the air, united by district and partnership. I could see the Careers shooting us dangers as we rode back into the gates. The roar of the crowd was smothered almost entirely.

"Well done!" Effie cried. "Simply wonderful!"

"You two were noticed tonight. Good work," Haymitch said. "Let's go upstairs and get you settled in before dinner."

"You were great," Gale whispered in my ear.

"So were you," I said as we walked into the elevator and the doors shut behind us.

**I really enjoyed writing from Gale's point of view in this. The whole point was to give you just a taste of his true feelings for her. Please comment and tell me what you thought!**


	5. Training

"Up, up, up! We have a big, big, big day!" Effie chirped.

I sat up groggily and looked around. It took me a minute to remember where I was. The memories of the parade, coming into my room, and just going to bed came back to me. I jumped out of bed and threw a simple shirt and pants on and ran down the hall to the dining area.

Gale was sitting at the table sipping coffee from a mug. "Morning Katniss," he greeted me. "What's the rush?"

"I-," I stuttered. "I don't know."

He smiled. "Have you tried the coffee?" He asked. "It's nasty stuff if you ask me but I want your opinion."

"Ok?" I said. I poured myself a cup and took a sip. I started to choke. "That's disgusting!" Gale was laughing hard across the table. "You jerk!"

"Yep," Gale smiled. I threw a napkin at him.

Haymitch and Effie joined us. Avoxes came in with trays of wonderful breakfast foods. When I was reaching for the bowl of fruit I knocked over my glass of orange juice. I saw a red haired, female avox come over and after a moment I said, "Hey, I know you!"

Everyone stared at me. "You couldn't have seen this woman before Katniss! She's an avox!" Effie chirped disapprovingly.

"No, I'm sure of it. I know you from somewhere," I whispered. I looked over toward Gale and I could tell he knew her too but he looked extremely alarmed. Then suddenly I remembered too. She was the fugitive we had seen captured in the woods about a year ago. I remembered that the boy she had been with had been killed.

"You know what," Gale said. "She looks exactly like Delly Cartwright."

"Yeah," I whispered. "I think you're right."

As the avox walked away Haymitch eyed us carefully. "Anyway," he said slowly. "Today you start your training. You also get in close proximity to your competitors. Don't pick a fight. Try to keep your distance and don't hit any of the training areas you excel at. Save those for the judges."

Gale and I nodded.

"Good," Haymitch said. "Now change and get down there!"

Gale and I went back to our rooms to change it to our training suits. I took a real look around the apartment as I went. The sitting room I passed was larger than my house alone. I walked into my room and realized for the first time that it was bigger than the sitting room. The bed was gigantic, one wall was covered by a television screen, and the couch was twice my body length.

I wanted to scream so much. I was probably going to be dead in a week anyway, and with all the money spent on this room alone Prim could live comfortably the rest of her life and still have a fortune left over. How dare the Capital have the gall to spend all this money on such worthless things when for years we were starving!

I quickly hurried into my suit and left the room. I stood fuming by the elevator.

"Hey Katniss," Gale said to me. "What's up?

"Hmm?"

"You look like you'll kill the next person who even glares at you," Gale said nonchalantly. "I know you're not a people person, but something tells you're not just nervous to meet our competition."

"I'm in a city overflowing with rich people that I can't stand," I snarled. "Every person I see I want to kill."

"Really," Gale said. "You feel that way too?"

I took a deep breath, "Yeah." We stepped into the empty elevator. "Isn't that wild Gale?"

"What?"

"That she's here," I whispered.

Gale scowls as he answers, "I couldn't believe it. It took everything I had not to say anything."

"You don't think she'll say anything!" I gasp.

"I doubt it," he said. "She shouldn't have anything against us, and she looked she had been a fugitive. She has no reason."

"We hadn't even tried helping her. What doesn't she have against us?" I glance at him.

Gale scowls again, "But she has nothing to gain."

"Revenge."

The elevator opened and we stepped out into the training center. Everyone else was already there.

"Alright listen up," the head trainer called. "I know all you want to do is get your hands on a weapon, but there are other things you need to know if you want to survive. Purify water, start a fire, tie a knot. Learn as many skills as you can. You may move to station to station as you wish. The only rule is that you may not practice combat with one another. There are trainers prepared to do that with you. You may disperse.

Immediately the Careers headed over to the weapons and started throttling dummies anyway they could. Gale and I watched as the other tributes slowly started to make their way to different stations.

"So," Gale asked. "Where do we start?"

"Archery, knots, and hand-to-hand combat are out for you."

"Why combat?"

"Not completely," I clarify. "You just can't be there a lot. Just long enough to pick up a few tricks. I can't do archery either, so let's start with something easy."

"Like what exactly?"

"Edible plants," I say over my shoulder as I start to walk toward the station. With Gale and me together we pass that station in under ten minutes. I tell him to go to the hand-to-hand combat station for a little bit and to meet me at the knot-tying station later.

The trainer is impressed with how much I know already, so she shows me a simple snare that hangs your opponent from a tree and leaves me to figure it out. I complete it easily.

After she teaches me a few more sets of snares I look over to Gale just in time to see him upper cut his opponent straight in the jaw so hard it sends him flying. I call him over because he knows what he's doing and it's attracting too much attention.

He watches as I complete each snare and copies each one flawlessly. The trainer is practically fawning over having such a talented tribute and teaches him such advanced knots so fast I give up and just watch him. He learns a good five new hunting snares, seven snares to incapacitate your opponents, and two knots that are good to help stanch bleeding when we're called for lunch.

"We've refreshed our strengths," I say to Gale. "After lunch let's learn something new."

"Right," he responds.

After lunch we head to the spear throwing station. Gale gets the hang of it quick enough, but I can't figure it out. My muscles seem to automatically reject my movements and try to flex in a way that I would draw a bowstring.

"How the hell did you get this?" I snap at Gale.

"How the hell are you not getting this?" Gale asked. "Here let me show you."

He came up behind me a wrapped his hand around mine that was holding the spear and pressed my back into his chest. "You hold it like this," he changed the position of my fingers. "Draw it back like this," he drew my arms back and shifted my shoulders. "And throw it like this," he detached my fingers from the spear and threw it, landing close to the bulls eye of the target. "Now you."

I got closer using his method, but I still couldn't get it. "That's it!" I snapped. "You stay here if you want but I _have _to move on."

"Ok, geez," Gale chuckled. "Always so hasty."

I tried throwing knives, but that turned out worse than the spears. I was getting ready to head to the swords when training was ended.

I groaned, "I'm screwed if I don't get a bow."

"We'll get you a bow, calm down. And you'll not be screwed," Gale flashed a smirk. "_I_ happen to have many _fortes_."

I cuffed him over the head and stepped into the elevator.


	6. The Scores

The week passes by in a blur. Gale gains some skill when it comes to throwing a spear or swinging a sword, but I just can't get the hang of it. It becomes clear to both of us that I can only use what I'm already good at in the arena.

We're getting ready to present our skills so that the judges can score us for tonight. After the last person leaves Gale grabs my hand. "What are you going to do?" I ask him.

Gale shrugs and drops my hand. "Probably knock a dummy around for a minute, snare it, then hit all it vital points with something sharp."

"Use the bow first when you stab it."

Gale smiles, "Of course. Can't make your skills with a bow look common now can we?"

Then they call him in. "Hey," he turns around and says, "Shoot straight."

I nod.

I'm called in about fifteen minutes later. Immediately I head for the bows. There stiffer than mine at home and I'm unsure how I'll handle it. The range is too short for me so I head to the middle of the room. My first arrow almost misses the dummy completely.

I'm infuriated with myself. What little attention the Gamemakers had for me is in no doubt gone, but I have to try anyway. My next shot it's the target straight in the heart. I hit all the vital points on the dummy, then I begin to shot anything I see. Paint cans, lights, knifes hanging on the wall, they all fall victim to my arrows.

I turned to the Gamemakers and what I see about makes me explode. A few of them watched me, but almost all of them are focused on the roast pig that was just bought for them.

_How dare they ignore me! Dammit my life is on the line here! _For a second I lose my cool, and before I know it I let my arrow fly at its new target. The Gamemakers gasp as my arrow buries itself in the apple from the pig's mouth and pins it to the wall. As they stare at me I bow unceremoniously and leave.

I drop the bow when I exit the room, open the elevator, and punch the button that will take me to my floor. My rage has worn off and I'm realizing the possible consequences of what I've just done. Gale's waiting for me when the door opens but I look right past him and hurry to my room.

"What the hell happened, Katniss?" He called.

I run into my room and slam the door behind me. I fall on my bed and sob. _What if I'm imprisoned? What if they go after Prim?_ After a moment I calm myself. _They can't replace me this late in the game. And they can't go after Prim without an explanation, and the scoring is secret._ Reassured by this I take a shower and head to dinner.

"So," Haymitch says. "How'd it go."

"Ok," Gale replies. "I showed off my skills in hand-to-hand combat and snaring, and I pierced the dummy with anything I knew how to use."

"Good. And you sweetheart?"

"I shot an arrow at the Gamemakers," I say nonchalantly.

Gale chokes on his drink and Effie gives off a high pitched squeak, "What were you thinking Katniss?"

"Well," Haymitch says slowly. "Did you hit any of them?"

"I shot the apple out of their roast pigs mouth."

"On purpose?"

"Yes."

Haymitch looks at me for a moment then smiles. "Oh well, you're probably dead anyway. How'd they react?"

I smiled "They stared at me with the dumbest expressions on their faces."

Gale gave me a good natured punch in the shoulder. "Good job, Katniss!"

After dinner we went into the living room to see the scores. Most weren't noteworthy except most of the careers got nine's or ten's. Gale got an impressive score of eight.

I held my breath when my turn was up.

"And Katniss Everdeen with a score of…" Caesar trailed of. "Eleven!"

I stared in shock as everyone congratulated me. I just couldn't believe it.

"Looks like they liked your attitude," Haymitch said. "Now off to bed, we have to prep you for your interviews tomorrow."

Gale and I started to walk down the hall toward our rooms. "Good job Katniss." Gale says to me.

"You too," I reply. "But I'm going to ruin it tomorrow with the interview!"

"Probably," Gale chuckled. "You're horrible with people."

"If you do good, with our combined scores we should have plenty of sponsors."

"Oh," Gale asked. "So we are going together in the arena."

"Of course," I reply.

"What do we do if we're the last left?"

I think about it for a moment. "We stick together till the other dies."

Gale thinks about it for a moment. "I can live with that."

"Good. Night."

"Night," He says back.


	7. The Interviews

"I don't know Haymitch!" I shouted. I was at my wits end. I had just spent three with Effie this morning, trying to learn how to walk in heels and smile. And for the past two hours I've been with Haymitch trying to find an angle for my interview. I'm not witty, sexy, or mysterious. Gale's going with charming, which is perfect for him, but I can't do that either.

"I don't know any more sweetheart," Haymitch sighed. "Just go out there and wing it."

I practically ran out of the room. I need to get out of this apartment so I ran into the elevator. I smacked myself in the head when I remembered that I can't go anywhere! I leaned my head against the wall above the buttons. _I hate this, I hate how they're keeping me here. I'm NOT an animal! _Then my eyes find the button that says "R", which I assume means roof.

I punch the button as hard as I can and the elevator starts to move. The doors open and I have a view of half the city. "I'll have to bring Gale here after the interviews," I whisper to no one in particular.

Refreshed, I head downstairs to have a bite to eat before the stylists have at me. My makeup and hair are done in a more classy style than my look from the Parade. Cinna puts me in an elegant dress that looks like its made of embers. "Twirl some time during the interview, ok?" He asks.

"Why?"

Cinna smiled, "the audience is going to get a kick out of the Girl on FIre this time."

Gale and I meet up and we're escorted backstage of where the interviews are held. "Damn you, Gale," I say quietly.

He gives me a confused look, "what the hell did I do this time?"

I sighed, "this is going to be so easy for you, I'll be lucky if I don't get kicked off the stage."

He laughed, "what's your angle?"

"I'm winging it."

He laughs again, "Good luck with that." I punch him in the shoulder and move to my spot in line.

Once we're all ready the Interviews begin. The careers were first. The girl from district one had the audience wrapped around her finger with her sexy attitude, and the boy had the audience laughing the whole time with his funny, carefree demeanor. The small girl from district two had this mysterious evil air about here, the boy from her district, Cato, was extremely cocky. Of course he had every right to be, his looks and skills would have sponsors lining up out the door, and as far as I could tell he was the most skilled with weapons.

The only other people worth noticing were the District Eleven tributes. The boy was as big as Cato, and he had a deadly, quiet air about him. The girl was only twelve years old and she reminded me of Prim.

My interview was nothing special. The only time I made any real impression was when I talked about my sister, and when my dress engulfed me in flames.

Gale was right after. The crowd loved him, and Casear had good banter going with him right away. The audience was completely in love with his looks and his charming attitude. But when he really won over the crowd was when the questions started to get personal.

_Gale's pro_

"So Gale, you got a girl back home?" Casear asked.

I laughed, "Not right now Casear."

"Oh come on. A good looking guy like you must have his eye on someone," he said with an enticing smile.

If only he knew. "And if I do?"

"Does she know?" I swear the whole audience was holding their breath now.

"No." She's completely oblivious.

"Is she taken?"

"Nope." Everyone else in the district knows she's mine.

"Then why haven't you said anything?" He said in disbelief.

I said hesitantly, "I think I'll be rejected."

"Listen," Casear gives me a nudge as he says, "if you win the games, there's no way she can say no."

I give a sad smile, "I don't think that will work out for me either."

"Why not?" Casear asks again.

I scowl. If I say I love her, we'll get more sponsors than we can count. We'll be forced to act on this if I do come out and say it, and I don't think she'll appreciate it. Besides, I don't want to tell her this way. Even if I tell her it's an act, she'll be the only one acting. I don't want to spend my last couple weeks alive like that.

I smile, "I'll tell you after I win."

The whole crowd is shouting at me to reveal my secret, but my buzzer goes off and I stride off the stage.

_Katniss pov_

Gale walks off the stage looking confident. "You really got them all riled up Gale," I say to him.

He chuckles, "I know. They're suckers for gossip."

I laugh to. After a moment I say, " I didn't know you had your eye on someone Gale."

He stops and gives me a really strange look. "Who say I did?"

I raise an eyebrow at him, "So you got the Capital all worked up over something that isn't true?"

He shrugs, "I guess."

"And it was genius," Haymitch says as he walks up to us. "His interview is the only thing the Capital can think of. Now go to the apartment, have some food, and go to bed, the games start tomorrow."


	8. Strategy

"Night Katniss," Gale calls over his shoulder as he starts to head back toward his room.

"Wait Gale," I say. "Can you come with me?"

I lead him into the elevator and hit the switch to bring us up to the roof. We walk out to the railing and we make ourselves comfortable.

"Wow," Gale says. "What a view."

"I know," I reply quietly. After a moment I say, "I think we need to talk strategy."

He looks over at me. "Sure," he turns is back on the view and leans on the railing. "First there's the Cornucopia."

I scowl, "the smart thing to do is to run, but it'll be hard to go in there with nothing."

He says, "maybe we should just grab whatever is within twenty feet of us and then run."

"What about weapons?"

He runs his hands through his hair. "Maybe... maybe you should run straight for the Cornucopia, and grab a couple weapons. I can try to grab a some supplies or maybe a couple packs and some food as I come after you. I think we can get out of there pretty fast."

I nod. "What do we do if we get split up?"

He scowls, "I don't know. A meeting spot is a bad idea in case one of us is unable to reach it. I guess we should just keep moving until we find each other."

I shrug, "I guess. We can just split the stuff so if we get separated we'll be ok." I pause for a moment then say, "And we already know what we're going to do if we're the final two... Is that it?"

He thinks for a second, "I think so."

"Great," I say. "Now all we have to do is survive."

Effie woke me up early and told me to get dressed. My suit was similar to the one I wore in Training, but this time it felt a little heavier and had a jacket. I was escorted onto the roof alone, and I boarded the hovercraft that would take me to the arena.

A tracker was inserted into my arm and I was put in a small room with only a small couch and refreshments. I tried to eat but my stomach couldn't take it, so I just tried to consume as much water as I could. It wasn't long before they came and escorted me to the Launch Room.

Cinna was there waiting for me and he was good company. I had really started to like Cinna. I think that in a way he's better than the rest of these people, because he has a better understanding of the real world.

The buzzer rang and I was told to go stand on my launch pad. "Hey," Cinna said as he grabbed my hand "I'm not aloud to bet, but if I could I would bet on you. Honestly."

I hug him. "Thank you," I whisper.

I walk on to my launch pad and a tube closes around me and I'm stuck. I'm truly paralyzed until my plate starts to move, then I force myself to get it together and think. I take one more deep breath before I'm exposed to the sun. _Game on._


	9. The Cornocopia

**Finally... WE ARE IN THE ARENA NOW GUYS. Enjoy :)**

**I don't own the Hunger Games. **

The sun was blinding and disorientating. My foot slipped and I nearly fell off the pad, but I caught myself before I fell. _You idiot! _I screamed at myself. _You could have just killed yourself. Get it together, now!_

Somehow my eyes adjusted to the light and I could see. The Cornucopia is about fifty feet away from me. Directly behind it was a grassland area, and about a hundred yards to my right there was a clearing with a giant lake. Directly behind me there are woods.

After I get my bearings my eyes start to comb through the bounty that lies before me. There is a sheet of plastic about ten feet from me, and a backpack and a water jug about twenty feet in. There are a few other things close to me, but I quickly start to search the Cornucopia. Weapons, tents, first aid supplies, food, a person could survive the rest of their life at ease with the bounty that lies in the golden horn. But what I _can't _find is a bow.

_What the hell? I showed my skill, why isn't it there. I got an eleven with it dammit! _Then a terrifying thought slips into my brain. _They hid it, so you would be forced to stick around._

The gong that signals the start of the games is about to ring and I'm out of time. _I guess I'll be forced to do without._

I position myself to run, and only then do I look for Gale.

He's about five plates to my right, searching the pile with his eyes. I guess he felt my gaze because he turns to me. I shake my head slightly and I mouth, "We need to just run."

He nods, and shifts his stance so that he's angled more toward me. My eyes leave him, and in the same second, the gong rings.

I bolt for the backpack I saw earlier, and pick up the sheet of plastic as I run. I yank the backpack off the ground and throw it over my shoulder, and I snatch up the water jug. I stop for a second, wondering if I should keep heading in.

Gale runs over to me and yanks me around by my shoulder, "Move!"

I feel a sudden force and I turn around to see a knife in my pack. We both start to sprint for the woods, but no other knives pursue us. I'm guessing it was the girl who specializes in throwing knives, the female from District 2.

Its almost an instant relief when we break through the tree line, but we both keep running. He's always within ten feet of me, and we don't stop until we both can't run anymore.

I'm bent over with my hands on my knees, trying to get air back into my lungs. I look up to see Gale leaning against a tree, a black pack on his shoulders. "Should we check them?" I ask. "Or keep moving?"

"No," Gale says as he's still breathing heavy. "We have... to keep moving. At least till... the cannon shots."

"Alright."

We set a steady pace, alternating between running and jogging. After about forty minutes we start heading downhill into a valley. It makes me nervous to be at a lower altitude then our competitors, but we will need water so I don't complain. We continue another ten minutes before the cannons start.

We both stop and listen to the canons till we count to eleven. Eleven people dead, thirteen left to play.

I look over at Gale, "Lets search the packs."

We sit underneath a tree and unpack the bags. I have a a pack of crackers, a pack of dried beef strips, a bottle of iodine, a box of wooden matches, a bit of coiled wire, sunglasses, an empty half gallon water bottle, and a black sleeping bag. Gale's has some rope, a lighter, bandages, a couple packs of fruit, a blanket, and a pocket knife. We decided that the supplies were already well distributed so we kept everything the same except we split the wire and i give him the water jug I picked up at the Cornucopia.

We keep moving until night fall. At dusk we both know it's time to stop. "There," Gale points to a tall willow. 'We can sleep up there."

We climb about thirty feet up before Gale's weight becomes too much and we are forced to stop. I lay out the sleeping bag and sit on top of it with my back against the tree as I wait for the Anthem to start. Gale is in a similar position one branch below me. Eleven names appear in the sky, but all the careers have survived.

"Should we set up watched?" He asks me.

I look down at him, "no lets just get some sleep."

I can feel the temperature dropping so I quickly climb into the sleeping bag. But it isn't five minutes before I can hear Gale's teeth chatter. I look down at him as he wraps himself in his blanket and say, "geez Gale just get up here."

He looks up at me startled. "W-what?"

I roll my eyes, "You're not going to freeze while I'm in this sleeping bag. We'll be squished but we can both fit. Get up here."

He practically jumps up to my branch as I climb out of the sleeping bag. The cold hits me so fast that my body starts shaking. "Hurry up it's freezing."

"Tell me about it," Gale says as he climbs into the sleeping bag. I crawl in after him and zip up the bag. His cold skin is a shock to me. "Wow they're really screwing with the temperature in here. You're freezing, and the anthem hasn't even been over for five minutes."

He yanks my body close to his and practically moans through chattering teeth, "You're so... warm." After a couple minutes his body stops shaking and he relaxes. He tries to move away from me a little but the sleeping bag is too small to let him move much. "Sorry," he flashes me a grin. "We're kinda stuck this close together."

"It's fine," I say as I close my eyes."It doesn't matter."

As I start to fall asleep I fell his arm wrap around my waist and I can feel him move closer. It's a small sleeping bag so I don't think much of it, and his skin is warm so I don't object. I feel a temporary sense of peace as I fall asleep in his arms.

**Katniss is so... innocent. This isn't my best work but I'm satisfied with it. Please comment and tell me what you think.**


	10. The Bow

**Gale's pov**

I woke up a little after dawn. Katniss was still sound asleep, curled up in my arms. I sighed and held her closer to me. I wanted to trace her soft skin with my fingers, but I didn't want her to wake and notice, so I was content with just holding her and letting her sleep.

In a way, this is my paradise. Lying in the woods, up in a tree, with the girl of my dreams asleep in my arms. But it's really just a tease. Soon she'll wake up and we'll restart the fight of our lives. I'll probably be dead in a week, and I'll never get a chance with her.

**Katniss' pov**

When I first woke up I had no idea where I was. I was in strange woods in a strange sleeping bag snuggled into a comfortable human body. Everything quickly came back and I sighed. I looked up and judging by the sun it was a little after dawn.

"'Morning Catnip," Gale whispered.

"Morning."

We got out of the sleeping bag and packed it in my bag. I opened the pack of beef stripes and gave us one each so that we had enough to keep us moving but enough to feed us when we are hungry. "So what now?" I asked.

"Well," Gale responded. "I would suggest we hunt, but the Careers could be anywhere by now and they might spot a fire, and plus we have no decent hunting weapons and snares take time. We need water though, but I'm not quite sure where a source is."

I raise a brow at him. "So we're stuck?"

"Not necessarily," he responds. "I think our answer is to head back to the Cornucopia. There we can get supplies and weapons. There's also a lake around there. The problem is-"

"The Careers probably claimed that area," I finish. I stand up. "You're right but it's the best option right now," I say and toss him the knife. "I think you can use that better than I can. I'll rummage through the pile and you'll stay on look out. Okay?"

He nods and we start the long trek back the way we came. It was a little harder getting back because we weren't as full of energy, but we made it there within a couple of hours.

We stopped at the edge of the clearing. We didn't see the Careers or their camp, so we assumed they were still out on their initial hunt. "They'll be back soon," I say. "Let's hurry." We both ran toward the pile and I immediately began to rummage through everything. I grabbed a game bag, a bottle of ibuprofen, a spear, two skinning knives, and a light tarp, but I couldn't find a bow.

"Hurry up Catnip," Gale says over his shoulder. "They'll be back soon."

"I know," I snap. "But Gale I can't- FOUND IT!" I scramble up the pile of supplies and grab a beautiful wooden bow and a full quiver. "I got it Ga-" My voice catches as a spears flies past my head and cuts my ear.


	11. The Careers

***Laughs nervously* Hey guys it's been a while. School started and everything got crazy so I kinda forgot about this. The good news is I'm uploading multiple chapters :D The other news is that chapter updates are going to be a little slow. I'll probably post the next chapter after this set, but I thought of an idea. I think what I'm going to do is take a little longer and finish THE REST STORY and then post them with a couple days in between so I can get feedback and make changes. I just don't want to be that evil author anymore that posts one chapter and makes you think their back but then they disappear again. ALSO I went back and edited this whole story. I originally wrote this in a format without spell check so I thought I caught most of it through my own editing… that was a horrifying mistake. Anyway it should be all fixed now ^.^ READ ON!**

"KATNISS GET DOWN!" Gale shouted. He grabbed my leg and pulled me down and hid us behind a stack of crates. We could hear the insane laughter of one of the tributes.

"Tremble in fear, Girl on Fire," the voice laughed. "Cause before long, your blood will be drying on the end of my sword.

I peeked over the boxes, bow drawn, and saw they were sheltering behind various objects where they were out of my reach. They also succeed in boxing us in. "Well part of that was true," I said to Gale. "There will be blood."

Gale pulled a mace out of the boxes we were behind. "But it won't be ours," he replied darkly.

I ducked as a horde of knives flashed towards me. "Good luck with that." I shoot an arrow at the boy from one's head and ducked back behind the crates. "We need to retreat."

He nods. We start to slowly move towards the woods, ducking behind crates. It crosses my mind that I should be grabbing supplies, but we're already efficiently equipped so the only thing I do is exchange our empty water jugs for two full ones. Once we reach the edge of the supplies we both make a break for the woods.

"KATNISS DUCK!" Gale shouts. I look behind me and Gale tackles me to the ground as a spear flies directly over our heads. He quickly yanks me up and we keep moving.

Its a wild chase. We run through the woods for what feels like forever with Cato and the other girl from District 2, Clove, and also the District 1 tributes close behind. The last thing my mind really processed was the sound of a creek. Then time slowed down.

They herded us right up to the bank of the creek, where we either would have to swim across and probably be hit with a knife or spear, or we could fight. I was looking up and down the creek, trying to find a way across, when I heard a victorious shout. Cato was twenty feet away from us, spear in hand, with the biggest smirk on his face. It was in that moment that I knew Gale and I were dead.


	12. Tracker Jackers

Time had slowed down. We're pinned against a river, surrounded on all sides, with no way to flee without dying. I'm frantically thinking of a way out. Suddenly, above Cato, I see a huge tracker jacker nest. I don't even think. I raise my bow, take aim, and fire. The nest falls and burst wide open. All at once the air is filled with a horrible humming sound, and the tracker jackers attack.

"Come on, Gale," I scream and yank him into the river. The current pulls us down stream and I look around once I come up to take a breath. I see most of the Careers running, but the blonde girl from One is convulsing on the ground, screaming.

We move down river with the current for a few minutes when Gale starts to swim for land. "Gale," I say. "We need to keep going, we're too close here."

He ignores me and shakily pulls himself onto the beach. Instantly I know something is wrong. He's shaking, and his eyes are glazed over. Then I see it. A huge red welt on his neck. He's been stung.

I instantly swim over to him. "Gale," I say his name a few times, but I get no response. I inspect him quickly to see if there are any other stings, but there are none. One sting won't damage a big guy like Gale, but the hallucinations could start any second. "Gale," I say again, but this time I grab him. Instantly his eyes snap up to meet mine.

He stares at me wide eyed for a second, then he lets out a blood-curling scream. He starts to try to run, but he's so weak from the poison he doesn't get fair. I realize he's just hallucinating and that I'm probably scaring him, but if I let him run he'll get himself killed.

I tackle him and try to pin him down with my weight. Normally this couldn't happen, but he's so weak right now he can't move. He keeps thrashing though, trying to run from me. Suddenly, I feel his hand make direct contact with the side of my face and I'm thrown off of him and onto the ground. _That's gonna leave a bruise,_ I thought.

I'm back up instantly and pin him down again, being sure to pin down his arms with my legs this time. He keeps looking at me terrified and screaming, so I slap my hands over his eyes and mouth to shut him up. We sit there for what feels like forever. I'm helpless as I let the poison run it's course. Part of me is worried that someone heard him, but mostly my mind is consumed by his dreadful sounds.

Finally, after what feels like an eternity, he goes limp. I slowly move my hands away from him. He's covered in sweat and he looks like he's in pain, but he's not a danger to himself anymore. I get off of him and move over to our supplies that are still on the river bank. He's lost the pocket knife and the packet of dried fruit, and I've lost two arrows. But besides that everything else is there.

I go back over and check on him, and just by looking at him I know he's burning with fever. I need to get him closer to the river, but I can't carry him. Slowly, I drag him over to the river, wincing every time its seems like I hurt him. Once he's there I grab some of the bandages, wet them, and gently wash his face with them.

As I clean him up, I really get a good look at Gale. He's got a truly handsome face, with perfect eyes and beautiful lips. I knew that one day Gale wanted to have a family. Marry a nice girl, become a father, and make his living by hunting instead of going into the mines. Unlike me, he had a nice future. It would truly be a shame for him to die here.

I know we can't stay here. Reluctantly, I leave Gale and walk a little downstream. I hear a cannon sound, most likely for the blonde girl, but besides that it's quiet. The height of the river drops and the land starts to form a really small valley around it. I walk a little farther down, until I'm completely hidden from anyones view. Someone would have to look directly down to see me. It's better than being out in the open, so I head back to Gale.

I take our packs and move them down river. Then I pull Gale into a shallow part of the stream. I float him down to where our packs are, being careful not to let him drown. After I pull him back onto land i sit down next to our packs and put his head in my lap, rewetting the bandages and putting them on his forehead every so often. Its going to be a long next couple of days.


	13. I'm Sorry

It was hard to keep busy in the few days before Gale woke up. I moved our little makeshift camp just a little farther down river, under a small cliff that allows plenty of room while shielding us from rain and sun. A couple times I ventured out and managed to shoot two squirrels and rabbits each in total. I also go out to look for the plant that I know can help heal his stings, but I can't find any. Besides that I don't leave his side. It feels like I'm tethered to him, scared to go to far incase he needs me.

On the evening of the third day he finally starts to stir. He lets out a groan, and instantly I'm right there next to him. "Gale," I say gently. He starts to react to the sound of my voice and he slowly opens his eyes.

"Hey Catnip," he whispers, and he gives me one of his signature cheeky grins.

I slowly run my hands through his hair, something I've been doing a lot since he's been unconscious. "You've been worrying me a lot these past couple days."

He scowls. "How long was I out?"

"Three days," I say gently. We're both talking quietly, and there's some sort of soft tension running through the air, but I can't tell exactly what it is.

"Three days!?" he gasps. He tries to sit up, but quickly goes back down with a gasp of pain.

"Be careful," I scold him. "You've been in the same position for nearly three days, you're bound to be sore. Here let me help you sit up."

Slowly, I help him move into a sitting position against the wall, steading him with one hand between his shoulders and one hand on his abdomen. As I move him, his shirt moves up just a little, and some of my skin comes in contact with his, and he lets out a small gasp. "Did I hurt you?" I ask.

"No," he breathes. "It's nothing... just a little sore that's all."

I move over to the small kitchen area I put together, where all our water and food is and a small fire I built. I grab a water jug and some cooked rabbit, and move back over to him. "You haven't had anything to eat or drink for three days. You need something."

Slowly his arm moves out to take the almost full jug from me, but his arm shake under the weight. "You're still not back to normal," I say. "Here I'll help."

I lift the bottle gently to his lips and give him a few sips before tearing off a chunk of rabbit meat and feeding it to him. Slowly he eats all the rabbit and drinks his fill. Slowly he seems like he's coming back to life, and he slowly starts to get up and stretch out his limbs. He walks out of our camp for a few minutes, and when he comes back he looks like the same old Gale.

"So," he asks as he sits and takes another sip of water. "How many are left?"

"Nine," I say. "Four have died since you've been asleep."

"That reminds me." He looks around. "How the hell did we get here."

"Well we got probably a mile down river before you passed out. Then I moved our stuff down here and had to float you down river," I explained. "How much do you remember anyway?"

He stops and thinks for a second. "I remember the Careers chasing and cornering us. Then you moved really fast and there was some kind of explosion and you pulled me into the water and then..." He gets this sick look on his face and covers his eyes with his hand. "What the fuck happened to me?" he asked hoarsely.

"I shot a tracker jacker nest." I say shyly. "The explosion was probably the buzzing they made. You got a sting on your neck." I gently grab his other hand and move it so he can feel the spot. "See?"

He moves his hand away and looks to where our hands are. "That explains it," he whispers. His eyes quickly look over me. "And you're ok?"

"I'm fine."

He nods. He looks at me for a second longer before moving his hand and cupping my bruised cheek. "What happened?"

"Oh, this?" I say nonchalantly. "It's nothing." I turn my head so I don't have to look him in the eye. I don't know how he'll react to finding out he hit me in the face. Normally I would think he would just be rational about it and understand, but right now I'm not so sure.

"Then why aren't you telling me," he says sternly. He gently grabs my chin and turns my head so I have to look at him. "What happened?"

"I-it was an accident," I choke out, my voice shaking from nerves. "When the venom f-first took effect you tried to run. I couldn't let that happen s-so I pinned you d-down. You were hallucinating." Every word feels like I have a mouth full of cotton. "You... you hit me."

It took him a second to process what I just said. Then his eyes went wide and he slowly let go of me and stares at his hand. "What..." I tried to reach out to touch him, but he flinches away from me. His body started shaking, and all at once I realized that we're probably being project all over Panem at this very moment. I knew Gale could never live with himself if the whole world saw him like this, so I reached over and grabbed him and pulled him close. He tried to pull away but I wasn't having it. I moved him so his face was buried in my neck and just held him. He wrapped his arms around me and after a few minutes he stopped shaking. "I'm so sorry Katniss," he whispered hoarsely.

"It's ok," I said gently. "You didn't even know it was me."

His arms tightened around me. "I don't like that."

I laugh half heartedly, "There wasn't anything you could do about it. You didn't even hit me as hard as you could."

He moves away from me, and he has a careful constructed face on right now, like he remembered we were being watched too. He looks at me for a second and I know he was grateful for letting him hide. He takes a deep breath, "So now what do we do?"

I'm just about to answer when I hear something land outside. I crawl out and see a small container attached to a white parachute. "A sponsor gift!" I exclaimed. "Haymitch hasn't forgotten about us!" I snatch it up and crawl back over to Gale. I open it and there's some sort of ointment.

"What is it?" Gale asks.

I think for a second before I realize. "It's for your stings," I explain. "The bastard must have seen you were in need, Gale." I dip my fingers in the jar and gently put some on Gale's sting. He lets out a sigh of relief.

"That feels so nice," he says. "I wonder if it's good for anything else?"

"I don't know," I say. "But let's hope we never have to find out."


End file.
